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The fells of the Lake District are ancient. The rounded, muscular mountains seen here were carved by huge glaciers, roughly 3 million years ago. The craggier hills are the result of volcanoes and young, by comparison. I photographed these ancient fells while walking from Rydal Water to Grasmere curving down below us. The views were magnificent and I felt compelled to paint this one as the cloud moved in and the landscape seemed to be brooding ... watching us.
Thank you as always for your kind comments, faves and invites - hope you like this.
Processed in PicMonkey with immense help from Topaz.
Sand Martin - Riparia riparia
The sand martin (Riparia riparia) or European sand martin, bank swallow in the Americas, and collared sand martin in the Indian Subcontinent, is a migratory passerine bird in the swallow family. It has a wide range in summer, embracing practically the whole of Europe and the Mediterranean countries, part of northern Asia and also North America. It winters in eastern and southern Africa, South America and the Indian Subcontinent.
The sand martin is sociable in its nesting habits; from a dozen to many hundred pairs will nest close together, according to available space. The nests are at the end of tunnels of from a few inches to three or four feet in length, bored in sand or gravel. The actual nest is a litter of straw and feathers in a chamber at the end of the burrow; it soon becomes a hotbed of parasites. Four or five white eggs are laid about mid-late May, and a second brood is usual in all but the most northernly breeding sites.
Population:
UK breeding:
100,000 nests
I went to Lake Artemesia in College Park, Maryland and wasn't expecting anything, but was richly rewarded to see several Wood Duck females and their broods. Here is a close up of one of the ducklings as they foraged among the Lilly pads on the lake. Such a cute little thing!
Taken 6 June 2016.
Grey Wagtail - Motacilla cinerea
The species is always associated with running water when breeding, although they may use man-made structures near streams for the nest. Outside the breeding season, they may also be seen around lakes, coasts and other watery habitats. Like other wagtails, they frequently wag their tail and fly low with undulations and they have a sharp call that is often given in flight.
This slim wagtail has a narrow white supercilium and a broken eye ring. The upperparts are grey and the yellow vent contrasting with whitish underparts makes it distinctive. The breeding male has a black throat that is edged by whitish moustachial stripes. They forage singly or in pairs on meadows or on shallow water marshes. They also use rocks in water and will often perch on trees. They have a clear sharp call note and the song consists of trills.
The breeding season is April to July and the nest is placed near fast running streams or rivers on an embankment between stones and roots. The male in display, makes short flights up into the air and descends slowly with fluttering flight accompanied by a rapid series of chipping high notes. In Europe the nests are often made in holes in manmade structures. The clutch consists of 3–6 speckled eggs and multiple broods may be raised with declining numbers in the clutch in subsequent broods. The usual clutch size is five in Ireland and the breeding success is about 80% with predation of eggs or chicks being the main cause of breeding failure. The Canary Islands population typically have smaller clutches and the breeding season is not as short and well marked as in populations at higher latitudes. The incubation period is about two weeks with chicks fledging within a fortnight. They live for a maximum of 8 years in the wild.
In some parts of the its range the white-throated dipper nests in the same habitats as the grey wagtail and there are some records of interspecific feeding of dipper chicks by adult wagtails.
Population:
UK breeding:
38,000 pairs
A rash of sleet showers passes over Dow Crag and its 'ridge'.
A similar rash had caught us as we made our way up South Rake on Dow Crag (previous upload). Thankfully they were transient and soon disappeared completely to give a fine end to the afternoon.
This rock is called the brooding hen. You can find it in Zittau mountains on top of the mountain "Töpfer"
A brood of Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis) cruises an urban pond in southwest Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
24 July, 2020.
Slide # GWB_20200724_9970.CR2
Use of this image on websites, blogs or other media without explicit permission is not permitted.
© Gerard W. Beyersbergen - All Rights Reserved Worldwide In Perpetuity - No Unauthorized Use.
Daylight comes as darkness drifts away,
All around life awakens,
The clouds are heavy and the sky is bleak,
Peaks are covered with snow,
What a sight it is to behold,
For this is called Glencoe.
East of the Desert View Watchtower in Grand Canyon NP sits what appears to be a lone mesa, darker than its surroundings due to vegetation. My research indicates that it's an extinct cinder cone called Cedar Mountain.
On this early April day, the low cloud cover made the mountain appear even darker and highlighted the contrast between the vegetation above the canyon rim, and the nearly barren rock walls. There is an off-road trail, and the ability to hike to the top of Cedar Mountain. It's roughly 2000' of elevation gain and a nice hike with very few other tourists taking the time to visit this location.
I think I will check it out more thoroughly on my next trip to the Grand Canyon.
Select Fine Art prints of this and other images can be purchased at bit.ly/ProPeak
I took this photograph mid morning during a falling tide on an uninhabited, Ft. Pierce, Florida beach. The iPhone is "looking" SE. The NE wind is strong, swaying the sea oats and dune grasses. The scene must be much like what survivors of the ill fated, 1715 Spanish "Plate Fleet" encountered when their ships grounded and sank offshore. It's magical at night under the moon.
A brood of Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis) on an urban pond in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
24 July, 2020.
Slide # GWB_20200724_9963.CR2
Use of this image on websites, blogs or other media without explicit permission is not permitted.
© Gerard W. Beyersbergen - All Rights Reserved Worldwide In Perpetuity - No Unauthorized Use.
Bee brood frame . HRH has been very busy and laid a lot of eggs which are cared for by 'nursery bees '.
Have a wonderful week
A Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis) female and her brood on an urban pond in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
24 July, 2020.
Slide # GWB_20200724_9971.CR2
Use of this image on websites, blogs or other media without explicit permission is not permitted.
© Gerard W. Beyersbergen - All Rights Reserved Worldwide In Perpetuity - No Unauthorized Use.
One of three swallow fledglings still being fed by mum on the north yorkshire moors. Fingers crossed they make it to Africa.
A female brown-headed cowbird.
The brown-headed cowbird is a stocky blackbird with a fascinating approach to raising its young. Females forgo building nests and instead put all their energy into producing eggs, sometimes more than three dozen a summer. These they lay in the nests of other birds, abandoning their young to foster parents, usually at the expense of at least some of the host’s own chicks.
Ref: www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Brown-headed_Cowbird/overview#
A notable size difference between the starling parent and koel chicks.
Wikipedia: Brood parasites are organisms that rely on others to raise their young. The strategy appears among birds, insects and fish. The brood parasite manipulates a host, either of the same or of another species, to raise its young as if it were its own, using brood mimicry, for example by having eggs that resemble the host's (egg mimicry).
The Siamese pied myna (Gracupica floweri) is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. Its plumage is black and white, with a black collar. It is found in Myanmar and China to Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. It previously was considered a subspecies of the pied myna, which has now been split into three species.
The Asian koel (Eudynamys scolopaceus) is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes. It is found in the Indian Subcontinent, China, and Southeast Asia. The Asian koel like many of its related cuckoo kin is a brood parasite that lays its eggs in the nests of crows and other hosts, who raise its young. They are unusual among the cuckoos in being largely frugivorous as adults.
Guess what? It's raining again in northern Illinois with another 1-2" expected after last weeks 6+.A fresh new flash flood warning issued as well.Thankfully nothing severe,just a brooding sky,thunder,darkness,and a whole bunch of wet.Good news is that the next week looks dry and comfortable....so far.
Budapest has 8 bridges that span the Danube from hilly Buda (on the left) and flat Pest (on the right). The bridge in the foreground is the Chain Bridge and Margaret Bridge is in the background, with access to Margaret Island. All 8 bridges were destroyed in World War II.
dailynewshungary.com/the-destroyed-budapest-in-shocking-p...
Up close and personal with these invaders here in Maryland. There were many more today than I ever saw 17 years ago.
View large if you dare ... this one was climbing up a tree in Hunt Valley, Maryland.
Painting is concerned with all the 10 attributes of sight; which are: Darkness, Light, Solidity and Colour, Form and Position, Distance and Propinquity, Motion and Rest. - Leonardo da Vinci
This capture you can see the shell they leave behind after leaving the ground spending 17 years underground eating on those yummy tree roots.
Similar to Tony Soprano, my brother has these mallards that stop by his pool every spring for a few days. They somehow fly in and fly out.
But this year brought something special — a brood of ducklings. The mother was very protective at first but started feeling more comfortable a couple days later and would fly out to forage for food and bring back to the ducklings. Interestingly, two males and another female also flew in the next day and then left.
The ducklings are still there.
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